In the latter half of February 2024, Polish farmers' protests halted several trains coming from Ukraine, with demonstrators in several instances dumping the contents of the carriages onto the ground. This phenomenon prompted a reaction from the Polish railway company, LHS. In a letter addressed to the farmers, the company explained that "due to the ongoing protests by farmers and the resulting illegal blockades of our stations and tracks, including the unacceptable action of placing obstacles on the track, as well as stopping or transiting on the tracks without proper training and without the consent of the infrastructure manager, PKP Linia Hutnicza Szerokotorowa wishes to express its deep concern and strong opposition to such actions."
The text specifies that "these behaviors are completely unjustified and highly damaging to our company and our partners and have caused significant financial losses from the first day, exposing us to claims from customers and creating serious damage to our image. Our company, therefore, demands an immediate cessation of illegal activities, which harm the national economy and endanger the health and life of the participants in the action and the employees of LHS, who will undertake legal actions to recover the losses and protect their rights and commercial interests. The protest, combined with the dumping of debris on the tracks, is a criminal activity that endangers the lives and health of both PKP LHS employees and the demonstrators themselves."
Company representatives emphasize that they suffered significant losses, caused by the blockade of seven convoys and the damage to both the carriages and the goods transported. LHS estimates damages at 1.3 million PLN, approximately 280,000 euros. Farmers responded that the protest was conducted within legal limits, was reported well in advance, and authorized by the Authorities, hence they intend to refuse any compensation claim. Lawyers for the farmers' associations are already working to refute the accusations, declaring the protest legitimate and accusing the railways of not respecting the traffic closure ordered by the Authorities.
In the lawyers' note, it reads: "The farmers protested along the tracks and blocked them as provided by the regulation, hence this complaint is legitimate, correctly and legally reported. The only inconvenience is the lack of Police to secure the blocked section. The farmers do not pose a danger to railway traffic, rather it is the railway that represents a threat to the farmers for not respecting the closure of the section ordered by the Authorities."
In the note, the farmers add that "we have fulfilled all our obligations regarding the organization of the protest and, before we started the demonstration, we were assisted by a lawyer who confirmed that our action was legal. We therefore consider the letter from LHS as a threat and the compensation request has scared us, although we believe we are in the right."
The railway company LHS, which reports directly to the Polish Ministry of Infrastructure, recently made headlines for having loaded several trucks from Kyiv onto its trains, allowing them to bypass the blockades established at the border by Polish transporters.
Marco Martinelli
